Part of my personal Forward Story involves my health and my weight. Health is important going forward. If I suffer a breakdown in my physical body, I obviously cannot achieve the other goals I have in mind. It is for this reason that I do not smoke, but what about my weight?

Modern medicine is pretty clear on the issue of obesity. Being overweight or obese is hazardous to your health. Even if you see no current symptoms or effects, carrying too much weight will lead to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and a host of other problems. Therefore, you and I must engage in future-oriented behavior today and every day in order to create a healthier future.

According to the charts, I am overweight. When I tell people that I am overweight many people tell me they don’t believe it. As a former athlete I have a a muscular build at 5’11”. I don’t look “fat” to them. However, the experts tell me I need to drop weight. So, how do I do that? Billions of dollars are spent in that pursuit. There may be no more fertile ground for scams than in the promises that a miracle drug or regimen will make it happen easily.

The simple answer to weight loss, and the one that people don’t really want to hear, is that you must restrict your calorie intake and regularly engage in physical exercise. That requires replacing present pleasure and ease for discipline and denial.

A couple of weeks ago my wife began the WW plan that counts points. I decided to join her on it in hopes of finally getting to the place on the chart where the doctors say I should be. So far I am seeing really good results. I track it on an iPhone app called iWatchr, which allows me to track my points, calculate the points from basic nutritional information, and track my weight. It is a very helpful little app.

The bottom line is that using this app and controlling how much I eat and exercise, I am engaging in daily behavior that is leading to the future I desire with regard to my health. Without these daily behaviors, the future will be just like the past.